I sat cross-legged on the living room rug, papers scattered around me like fallen leaves after a storm. My eyes stung from hours of reading the same numbers over and over, figures dancing in my vision. I pressed my fingers to my temple, trying to ease the ache that had bloomed there.
It didn’t matter how many contracts I reviewed or how many deals I forced my brain to focus on the truth was, lately, nothing could quiet the noise in my head. Business had always been my escape, something I could bury myself in when emotions became too heavy. But now? Even balance sheets and projections couldn’t silence the memory of Nathaniel’s touch or the burning weight of secrets I had no choice but to carry.
It had been weeks since I and Nathaniel made out, and the memory still clung to me like perfu
